Get reliable rangeland science

SECRETIVE MARSHBIRD, PASSERINE RESPONSE TO PRESCRIBED BURNING, GRAZING, HERBICIDAL TREATMENTS IN CATTAIL-INVADED WETLANDS.
Author
Anderson, Sarah L.
McGranahan, Devan A.
Hewitt, Anthony
Day, Stephanie
Hovick, Torre J.
Publisher
Society for Range Management
Publication Year
2017
Body

As an invasive aquatic plant species, hybrid cattail (Typha x glauca) often forms monodominant stands that alter wetland structure, function, and plant species composition.� Managers seek to control this invasive species to maintain wetland species diversity, heterogeneity and ecosystem processes.� Secretive marshbirds are waterbirds who are cryptic in nature, seldom vocalize and live in dense, tall emergent vegetation alongside passerine species such as the Yellow-headed Blackbird (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus), Marsh Wren (Cistothorus palustric), Sedge Wren(Cistothorus platensis) and Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana).� The cryptic nature of secretive marshbirds makes species like the Virginia Rail (Rallus limicola), Sora (Porzana carolina), and Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps) difficult to survey; while they are known to prefer tall, dense emergent vegetation, their relationship to cattail-dominated stands is less well-understood. Furthermore, there are few studies on secretive marshbirds and passerines following the application of fire, grazing, and herbicidal treatments to reduce cattail density, and understanding this relationship could inform management decisions about cattail control and optimization of marshbird habitat. We estimated abundance for three species of secretive marshbird using point-call surveys and four species of passerines using point-count surveys and we sampled cattail abundance and structure with terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and clipping.� We sampled 16 wetlands across eight treatments in a full-factorial design testing burning, grazing, and herbicidal treatments at Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge in central Minnesota.� Species-level density estimates and community-wide ordination suggested little evidence of substantial effect of treatments on marshbirds and passerines, and we discuss species composition along gradients of vegetation structure.

Language
English
Resource Type
Text
Document Type
Conference Proceedings
Conference Name
SRM St. George, UT
Collection
SRM Annual Meeting Abstracts